NEWTON, MASS. — Dana-Farber has opened a 140,000-square-foot cancer treatment center at the site of the former Atrium Mall, located at 300 Boylston St. in Newton, a western suburb of Boston. The Bulfinch Companies led the redevelopment of the two-story facility, which offers a range of cancer therapy practices, clinical trials and supportive services for adult patients and families throughout the region. Bulfinch acquired the property in 2012 with plans to convert it into a medical and wellness facility.
STONEHAM, MASS. — RK Centers, a retail investment firm with offices in New England and Florida, has acquired a 119,568-square-foot building leased to BJ’s Wholesale Club in the northern Boston suburb of Stoneham. The sales price was $20 million. The building is situated on a 9.2-acre site near the junction of Interstates 93 and 95. Eastern Retail Properties represented the locally based seller, IYH Corp., in the transaction.
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Marcus & Millichap has brokered the sale of the Holiday Inn Buffalo International Airport, a 207-room hotel, for $3.9 million. The property was built in 1968 and features banquet facilities, a fitness center, shuttle service, business center and an outdoor pool. Jerry Swon, Daniel Zagoria, Luke Prybylski and Will Nollmann of Marcus & Millichap represented the seller, DSM California LLC, in the transaction. The team also secured the buyer, Stephen Development LLC.
RANDOLPH, MASS. — Cornerstone Realty Capital has arranged a $14.8 million acquisition loan for Reed Street Apartments, an 88-unit multifamily property in Randolph, a southern suburb of Boston. The property’s unit mix consists of 15 studios, 49 one-bedroom apartments and 24 two-bedroom residences. The borrower, True North Capital Partners, plans to upgrade unit interiors, common areas and amenity spaces. The financing was structured with a fixed interest rate, a 30-year amortization schedule and 36 months of interest-only payments.
NEW YORK CITY — New York City-based mortgage banking firm Meridian Capital Group and global investment manager Barings have launched a new multifamily lending platform that will be headed by former Freddie Mac CEO David Brickman, who left the agency late last year. Under the terms of the agreement, the joint venture will acquire the assets and liabilities of Barings Multifamily Capital and operate that entity’s origination and servicing businesses for its portfolio of agency loans. The philosophy behind the new venture centers on leveraging the depth and reach of the platform of Meridian Capital, which in 2020 closed approximately $40 billion in loans via deals with more than 250 unique lenders. The newly created platform will be operated as a standalone business under its own name and branding, which will be announced prior to the transaction closing. Meridian will own a majority of the newly created platform, the day-to-day operations of which will be overseen by Brickman. “Our partnership with Barings will enable us to join forces with one of the world’s leading asset managers and reintroduce Meridian to the direct agency lending arena,” said Ralph Herzka, chairman and CEO of Meridian Capital. “The addition of David Brickman to our executive …
CANANDAIGUA, BROCKPORT AND FAIRPORT, N.Y. — Greystone has provided a $61.2 million Fannie Mae loan for the refinancing of a portfolio of multifamily properties totaling 769 units in Upstate New York. The portfolio comprises the 295-unit Centerpointe Apartments & Townhomes in Canandaigua, the 160-unit Willowbrooke Manor Apartments in Brockport and the 314-unit Highview Manor Apartments & Townhomes in Fairport. Drew Fletcher, Matthew Hirsch and Paul Fried of Greystone originated the financing, which was structured with a 10-year term and a fixed interest rate, on behalf of the borrower, locally based investment and development firm Sinatra & Co. Real Estate.
NEW YORK CITY — JLL has negotiated the sale of the 443-room New York LaGuardia Airport Marriott hotel in Queens. The building spans 224,620 square feet and houses the Ditmars Bar & Grill restaurant, a fitness center and 13,000 square feet of meeting and event space. The property received $30 million in renovations in 2018, including reconfigurations of public spaces and meeting areas, as well as remodeling of guest rooms and upgrading of parking lots. K.C. Patel, Kevin Davis and Nikhil Chuchra of JLL represented the seller, Rubicon Cos., in the transaction. California-based ASAP Holdings purchased the asset for an undisclosed price.
NEW YORK CITY — Freshly, a provider of meal kit services that was recently acquired by Nestlé USA, has signed a 92,306-square-foot office lease at 63 Madison Avenue in Manhattan. The company’s new headquarters space will encompass the 12th and 13th floors at the Class A building. Eric Ferriello of Colliers International represented Freshly, which is expanding and relocating from a 20,000-square-foot space at 115 E. 23rd St., in the lease negotiations. Peter Duncan, Matt Coudert and Alex Bermingham represented the landlord, George Comfort & Sons Inc., on an internal basis. The building was recently renovated, and a 60,000-square-foot Whole Foods Market is planned to open on the ground floor.
Colliers Negotiates Life Sciences Lease for Gene Therapy Firm in Philadelphia’s University City Area
PHILADELPHIA — Colliers International has negotiated a life sciences lease at 3675 Market St. in Philadelphia’s University City neighborhood. Joseph Fetterman and Clifford Brechner of Colliers represented the tenant, gene therapy firm Spirovant Sciences, which will use the space for its expanded headquarters and lab operations, in the lease negotiations. A partnership between Ventas and Wexford Science + Technologies developed the 14-story, 340,000-square-foot building, which houses lab and traditional office space and is located near a variety of retail and restaurant options.
NEWARK, N.J. — The U.S. arm of beauty retailer L’Occitane en Provence has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of New Jersey and announced plans to close several stores in an effort to optimize the company’s U.S. footprint. L’Occitane currently operates 166 stores nationally. At least 23 stores are being targeted for closure in the U.S. and the company is taking a closer look at its other leases in hopes of better positioning L’Occitane for success over the next few years, according to reports by the New York Business Journal. Stores are set to remain open through the restructuring process. L’Occitane is the latest regional mall mainstay to struggle under strain caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. The company was recently sued by Simon Property Group — one of the largest shopping mall operators in the U.S. — for more than $3.7 million in back rent, according to reports by Crain’s New York Business. While L’Occitane has seen year-over-year growth in online sales, the business continues to feel the impact of high rent obligations, which the company deems no longer tenable. “Today’s action is a pivotal step forward in achieving the full potential of …